Epidemiological and sociodemographic profile of Mpox in Brazilian Amazon: a cross-sectional study
BACKGROUND: The Mpox outbreak was characterized by viral transmission within sexual networks and atypical clinical presentations, requiring regional epidemiological evaluations. This study aimed to describe the sociodemographic profile, temporal notification trends, and clinical characteristics of suspected and confirmed Mpox cases in Pará, Brazilian Amazon (2022-2025). MATERIALS AND METHODS: Observational, cross-sectional, and analytical study based on the Notifiable Diseases Information System (SINAN) between March 2022 and December 2025, adhering to STROBE guidelines. The sample (N = 296) was stratified into confirmed Mpox cases (G1; n = 86) and ruled-out cases (G2; n = 210). Associations were evaluated using Pearson's Chi-square test (for expected cell counts ≥ 5) or Fisher's exact test (for expected counts < 5), with significance set at p < 0.05 in SPSS v.26.0. RESULTS: In G1, infection was concentrated among men (97.7%), cisgender men (96.5%), adults aged 19 to 59 years (98.8%), residents of Belém (76.7%), individuals with tertiary education (53.5%), and those reporting homosexual (73.3%) or bisexual (12.8%) orientation (p < 0.001). Clinically, fever (81.4%; p < 0.001) and localized genital lesions (43.0% in G1 vs. 6.2% in G2; p < 0.001) were the primary presentations. Intimate sexual contact was the primary probable exposure pathway (65.1%; p < 0.001). A high proportion of HIV coinfection was observed in G1 (54.7%), with complete reporting overlap with immunosuppression status, alongside 23.3% presenting an active STI at notification (p < 0.001), predominantly active syphilis (16.3%). Clinical management was predominantly outpatient (7.0% hospitalization rate; p = 0.261), with a 96.5% cure rate among valid confirmed cases. No Mpox-attributed deaths occurred among confirmed cases, though all-cause mortality in G1 was 2.3% (n = 2). CONCLUSION: Mpox cases in Pará were concentrated in the state capital, associated with intimate sexual contact networks among young adults, and characterized by high coinfection frequencies with HIV and syphilis.
Authors
- Luiz Fernando Almeida Machado (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4571-4715)
- Ricardo Roberto de Souza Fonseca (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0312-0553)
- Sílvio Augusto Fernandes de Menezes (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1679-9756)
- Marcos Vinicius Neves dos Santos
- Gabriel Palheta Beltrão
- VICTOR AUGUSTO DE ALENCAR MENEZES (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0007-6616-2669)
- Leonardo Miranda dos Santos
Institutions
- Universidade do Estado do Pará (BR)
- Universidade Federal do Pará (BR)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Infection
- Published
- 2026-10-16
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1007/s15010-026-03022-3
- Primary Topic
- Poxvirus research and outbreaks
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00